Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-12-26

A GLIMPSE OF CANTON.

A GLIMPSE OF CANTON.
Through Strange Streets Crowded with q
Hostile People-Queer Food In the Mar
ket.
CANTON, CHINA, Oct. 24.-After de-
lightiul breakfast given in our honor by
our lavishly hospitable Consul, Charles
Seymour, ESQ we sailed forth to view
the city. Sedan chairs were provided for
US, carried by coolies who were under the
supervision of very superior Chinese
guide. This guide had broughta covered
chair or palanquin for me, as was the
only lady in the party, and was very much
| disgusted when I declined to use it, but
So l had gone to China to see, did not
propose to hide my light under bushel
Our guide consequently appropriated that
chair to his own use; IS he could have
gone through Canton blindfolded, how
ever, he was quite as well there as any
where else, and was carried at the head
of the procession, while we followed. II
was evident that we made great i'm
preston upon the natives. They stood
still and stared at US open-mouthed, and,
as fancied, with intense admiration, IN
til discovered that rhe word "fsndusi, -
which they howled at er US, means "for-
eign DEVIL" and that they were in reality
very hostile toward Us.
The streets are paved with stone and
narrow, not more than six or seven feet
wide at the most, with just room enough
for two chairs ID squeeze by each other.
The footpassers were damned against the
wall without ceremony. and glared at Us,
muttering "Fanquai." "Farquai" We
went down the street of "One Hundred
Grandsons," and up the street of "Ever-
lasting Love-" and through the street OF
Refreshing Breezas," which is
certainly = misnomer, for Canton
beats = the world in abominsble
odors,r Both sides of the streets
are TcroWded with shops and stalls.
Restaurants abound, where cats and dogs,
Dried rats and black CATS eyes are served
apeto all who can afford to pay for these
Injuries. They are expensive. The
I:fesh of black cats and dogs is much more
highly priced than that of cats and dogs
Of any other color, and the unskinned ia /
| is. left on the animal to prevent any de-
cepfian beiHg 4prscticed upon the pur-
chaser.S mad q black chow dog, to which
became much attached, but the hungry
glance cast by the coolies upon that un-
offending quadruped whenever we took
our walks compelled me to part with 1t.
In the fish market the fish swim about
in little tanks. ] saw Chinsman sele ct
one, from the side OF which the vender
cut pound or two and then returned the
poor, bleeding, gssping object to the
tank to swim about until some other Gus
toner bought the rest of it, or until
death relieved its sufferings During our
ramble we met Mr.. HowQus, one of the
richest mandarins IN China, and he took
us to his house and introduced US to his
wives. They were much powdered and
rouged. Their feet were about three inches
in length and their fnger-nails from
five to seven inches longer. In order to
keep the nails from breaking they are
slipped into gold sheaths, which daDgle
simlessly from the little skinny fioge rs.
Howqua's wives are not things Of beauty,
though | am quite prepared to believe
that they may be joys forever. We con-
versed as fuentiy as our very limited &C.
qusintance with each others vernecular
would allow: examined each others
clothes and hair with intense interest and
drank enough scaldlng tea to fost our in
teInal organs. Still. we found time hang
8 little heavy on our hands and were not
sorry to say "Chin- chin" and move on.
The day was very warm and the cloth
| ing of our coolie bearers became, by de-
grees, alarmiEgly conspicuous by its 40
sence. They shed their neither garments
st the earliest opportunity, but in view
of the intense heat and the zeal with
which they trotted it seemed cruel to pro-
test.
Our ears were greeted by the shrill
| sound of Chinese pipes and the monoto-
nous beating OF gopgs, which always
herald the approach of q procession OF
some kind, and following hard upon"
around the corner st rep'd pace came
g string of small boys bearing banners,
lanterns ard red flags, and beating
gongs, tom toms and drums. Some mu-
slciaDs were behind them, and they in
.tnrn were followed by men bearing richly
ftt CO sted canoples, under which reposed
roast pigs, chickens, ducks, and the like,
ornameuted with bright red paper roses
with wildly green leaves. Then came q
c. fin shaped precisely like the trunk OF q
tree and drawn by number OF hearers,
and behind it the mourners in jtnrickshas
drawn by coolies. There were two
mourners in each rickshs, their faces con-
cealed from view by pieces Of thick white
cotton cloth, under which they
1were supposed to lament without
ceasing. Two or three men, armed with
short bamboo poles, ran along by the side
of the rickshas to "stir the animals up"
and in the event of any mourner ceasing
from his labors, he WAS reminded by an
energetic prodding in the side that the
end WAS not yet, whereupon the bowling
would be resumed with redouoled yigor,
and the increased anguish which shnrp
drive in the vicinity OF ones FLOATING
rib" would be apt to create. Toe DIN
was deafening. There was some women
In the procession, but not many, and the
small hey there, as everywhere, seemed
to predominant.
Many coffins are deposited by the road
side on trestles or little piles Of stones,